Month: March 2014

March 24, 2014

It looks like Le Mans is JUST within the new Astra 2E spot beam

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As any readers of my blog will know, I have a little Sky HD multi-room box in my caravan “kit”, as well as a little folding arm satellite dish, which is for use on any site where Freeview / terrestrial reception is not possible (I have been to one such site in Appletreewick in the Yorkshire dales).

I also plan to use the dish and receiver when in France later in the year, for use at the 24 hours of Le Mans. The idea is to watch the race on Eurosport whilst we are at base, but also to watch some of the world cup, and specifically the England V Italy match on the Saturday evening!

The UK free to air satellite channels have recently moved to a new satellite with a tight UK spot beam, meaning reception of these channels (which will air the England world cup games) is much more difficult outside of the UK. Thankfully, the official reception “spot” for this satellite looks to extend to the Le Mans region of France, but only just!  This means my little 50cm dish should pick up BBC and ITV channels no problem, although alignment may be a little more critical than it is at home.

I would imagine that for Eurosport, and other encrypted channels, reception will be no issue whatsoever as these services are on a satellite with a much wider pan-European spot.

March 17, 2014

I took the caravan for a spring “shake down” at the weekend

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As the caravan has been sat in storage since October last year, I wanted to take it out for a “shake down” to check everything was healthy. I have purchased various bits  over the winter, such as LED bulbs (specifically for trips when off EHU) satellite dish, sky receiver, etc… and I wanted to test them out!

I swapped the  little spot light bulbs, the toilet / shower light bulbs, and the awning light bulbs for SMD LED models. The results are superb; the light output is far superior to the previous bulbs, and although I don’t have an ammeter to test, they should consume significantly less power (up to 90%).

I also tested my new Triax satellite dish with folding LNB arm. I tested this on the caravan jockey wheel with a bracket I have, and it was superb. It was very easy to set-up and locate the satellite. I also tried the little HD Sky multiroom box I bought, and that worked a treat for viewing Motors TV!

I used some Milton to disinfect the water pipes and hot water tank, and fitted a new water filter to the system. The site I was staying on for the night had a water supply and grey water drain directly on the pitch which was brilliant, as it made this task a breeze. It is so convenient having “mains water” and not having to fill a barrel, or empty the waste. I really must book more plots that have this “full service” option as it is so much better!

I tested some food gadgets too;  I tested my mini chopper, which is a tiny food mixer, to make a beef Madras from scratch. I used the chopper to grind up the spices, and to blend the garlic, tomato and ginger. I used my new pan too!   I also tried my milk frother to make myself and a friend a couple of decent cappuccinos!

The shake down was a success, and  (pending a successful service today) I will be going away for two nights with the family this coming weekend! We cant wait!

March 4, 2014

RC Chinook Helicopter – What a great flying toy !

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When away visiting friends last week, I was shown a little “SYMA S026G Chinook” R/C helicopter. My mate Adam has one, which was given to him as a gift. I’ve had an R/C helicopter previously, but it was one of the first generation polystyrene models which only really want up and down. This dual rotor Chinook is a world away!

The helicopter is 3Ch, and Infra red controlled. There is a reasonably study handheld remote included, as well as a USB charging cable (although it can also be charged via it’s own handset via a concealed cable)

The twin rotors of the Chinook makes this toy very stable in flight. It can hover very well, turn 360 degrees on the spot, move forward, backward, up and down. You can land and take-off without too much drama, and it is quite easy to get the hang of things.

I’m very pleased with this for £24. It is incredible to think that it is even possible to produce something like this for that price.